PCOI IKEA
Once 4D printing is implemented within Ikea, it will have a great impact on all business processes. To describe these changes in business processes, the PCOI model is used.
Figure 1: PCOI-model
Process
The manufacturing process of furniture will
change. The production will have an automated 4D-printer that will need less
people to operate than other machines. For wooden furiniture the production process starts with gluing together, then the surface is scrubbed, sawn, painted and drilled. The 4D-printers run autonomous so there won't be a lot of operators needed. Only the supply of materials and removal of the end-product is needed. The production of one product will take a
relatively long time so to make a mass production a larger surface factory is needed.
The materials which the printer will use for the furniture are compactly
packed. Therefore, the warehouse for the materials won't have to be big. Also, the
end-product is packed in a smaller box than needed before. The warehouse for
finished goods will therefore be smaller than before.
A 4D-printer needs extra ventilation for
the air to be safe to breathe for people in the factory. Therefore, a new ventilation
system needs to be implemented in the factories that will produce 4D-printed materials.
When the 4D-printed furniture is produced
in mass-production, there will be less production lines for wooden furniture
needed. A lot of machinery for those production lines can be sold. The
production lines for wooden furniture are much more labor intensive than
production lines for 4D-printed furniture. The factory will need far less workers
than needed in a wooden furniture mass-production factory. Because there is less
machinery used to make a product the total maintenance will be less. The maintenance
will also be focused on only one type of machine which will be easier to handle.
Sawing machines for wood are dangerous
because they are sharp and can cut people. When the production of wooden
furniture declines, fewer of those machines are needed. A 4D printer is far
safer than sewing machines.
A 4D-printer uses exactly the right amount of
materials for a product. Therefore, a 4D-printer has close to zero waste. When
producing wooden products there will be more waste because the right forms must
be sewed and that will create wooden waste.
Control
Because the time it takes to produce 1
product, the lead-time will be longer than before. Therefore, IKEA needs to use
a Make-To-Stock CODP to keep up with changes in demand, this is the CODP
they're already using. The space IKEA currently needs for the safety stock is bigger
than they need when producing products with a 4D-printer. The warehouse they
need will be smaller and fewer operators will be needed to operate the material
flow.
The materials needed for 4D-printing are
only nanocomposite and recycled plastic filaments. Those materials need to be bought
to produce 4D-printed products. Recycled plastic can be bought in the region of
the production locations and will require less transportation costs than before. Also, the safety stock of recycled plastic can be lower because the products don't
need to travel as far as the wood. Most wood for the production of IKEA products
comes from North America or Eastern Europe. That must be transported to south-east
Asia for the production. Recycled plastic can be sourced from south-east Asia. The
nanocomposite is harder to get and is expensive. Currently that material is
possible to get from China, Western Europe and USA. Because there aren't many
places to get this material it will be dangerous for the supply chain. To
maintain a safe supply IKEA needs to have contracts with multiple suppliers so
if one supplier can't deliver, they can still get the material from a different
supplier.
Organization
The organization will stay the same at the top of the organization. In a production facility there will be far less operators needed because the 4D-printers can produce autonomous. Also, will there be a different division for the production. The division for wooden furniture will become smaller in the future and the division for 4D-printed products will grow.Information
The data-flow will be less complex because the 4D-printers can produce autonomous. The printer only needs one drawing to produce instead of a lot of different production orders for sawing, drilling and painting wood.Engineering
Engineering will be more complex due to complex designs. The special materials have to be put in specific locations with different temperatures to make sure a chair will become the chair that's designed. De furniture designers will have to learn to design specifically for 4D printing. When designing there must be thought of the assembly process of the 4D chair so that it is possible in a normal household. Engineering will therefore become more complex.BOM
The new 4D-printed products will contain plastic and nanocomposite. The plastic will be used from rolls filled with plastic. There will also be smart materials needed to print the product. These materials are called nanocomposites. Nanocomposites are still expensive to buy, and plastic is cheap to buy. The advantage for plastic filaments for the 4D-printer is that they can be made from recycled plastic. That plastic is cheaper, and it also is in line with the sustainability goals of IKEA.Sources used in this post
Technology & Engineering for IEM Intro - Fontys
The evolution of 3D printing in manufacturing - Manufacturing digital
IKEA supply chain green innovation - Unwrapping supply chain
IKEA supply chain management - Dynamic Inventory
IKEA global supply chain planning processes - Research gate
Manufacturing processes for advanced materials - Nist
More information about IKEA context: